'Very serious': High schoolers shared AI-generated nude images of classmates, prompting police investigation

New Jersey high school students shared artificial intelligence-generated nude images of their underage classmates, prompting a police investigation, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

According to students at Westfield High School, one or more of their classmates used an online AI tool to generate the pornographic material. Those fake photos were then shared with others at the school.

A high school spokesperson confirmed the incident to parents via email but declined to share how many students were involved or whether any disciplinary action had been taken, the WSJ reported.

One female student noted that the sophomore boys were acting "weird" and whispering among themselves on Monday, October 16, the student's mom told WSJ.

Several days later, a boy told some of his female classmates about the images, the mom said. At least one of the male students had taken photos the girls had posted online and had run them through an online AI tool to generate the fake nude photos.

The female students reported the incident to school administrators, and parents were informed the same day.

"At first I cried, and then I decided I should not be sad," one female student said. "I should be mad and should advocate for myself and the other victims."

"We're aware that there are creepy guys out there," she continued, "but you'd never think one of your classmates would violate you like this."

Westfield High School Principal Mary Asfendis told parents, "This is a very serious incident."

"New technologies have made it possible to falsify images, and students need to know the impact and damage those actions can cause to others," she added.

Parents told the WSJ that the school informed some of the girls whose online photos were downloaded and used to generate the fake pictures.

Four parents filed reports with the local police department. One of those parents told the outlet, "I am terrified by how this is going to surface and when. My daughter has a bright future, and no one can guarantee this won't impact her professionally, academically, or socially."

Republican New Jersey state Senator Jon Bramnick stated that he is reviewing whether current state laws that criminalize the creation of these types of images, and if not, he plans to draft a bill.

"This has to be a serious crime in New Jersey," Bramnick said.

Sensity AI reported that 90% of AI-generated deepfake images are pornographic. AI companies with image generators, including OpenAI and Adobe, have safety measures in place to prevent users from creating pornographic images.

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